MMC shareholders approve Malakoff listing

KUALA LUMPUR: Shareholders of MMC Corp Bhd unanimously approved the listing of its power unit Malakoff Corp Bhd at an EGM yesterday, paving the way for what could be the country's largest initial public offering (IPO) in May this year.
MMC group managing director Datuk Seri Che Khalib Mohamad Noh said the proposed listing will allow the regions largest independent power producer (IPP) to raise money for its future expansion.
"We believe that we already gained the size now and it (the listing) will also allow us to expand further, in terms of the business of Malakoff. Malakoff being the largest IPP in this region, among Asean countries, we are well-positioned now to move and spread our wings further," he told reporters at its EGM yesterday.
Commenting on the RM1.80 per share price of its IPO, Che Khalib said it is not overpriced, as opined by some analysts.
"It's not overpriced. We believe at RM1.80, it is a very good price. So far, the indication of interest has been quite good," he added.
Malakoff will issue 1.52 billion shares or 30.4% of the enlarged paid-up capital of the company, comprising one billion new shares and 520,000 existing shares offered for sale.
Post-listing, MMC's stake in Malakoff will be reduced to 37.8% from the current 51%.
MMC said in a circular that it will be able to increase its shareholders' funds via the proposed offer of shares, and repay part of its borrowings, which would reduce its gearing and further improve its capital structure.
The proposed listing, which was postponed twice before, was granted an approval-in-principle by the Securities Commission last Thursday.
Malakoff is the largest IPP in Malaysia with a net generating capacity of 5,350MW from its six power plants. Its core focus is on power generation, water desalination and operation and maintenance services.
Its international assets include power and water ventures in Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman and Australia, with an effective capacity of 689.6MW of power and 358,206 m3/day of water desalination.
In a stock exchange filing yesterday, MMC had proposed a final single-tier dividend of 3.5 sen per share totalling RM106.57 million for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2014.